Dashboard woes & fed up

Still having issues with the dashboard electrics on my Campaign.

Thought I cured things but then a bulb on the instrument cluster now in-op so will have to remove cluster again which worries me as more times I disturb it the more likely it'll get damaged.

I changed the light switch as the rheostat seemed faulty which cured a couple of things but now when I turn on lights the Rev-counter stops working. 🤷🏼‍♂️

Changer rear springs in the end as existing ones seemed a bit saggy and car squatted down a bit at rear.

Oh and left car for couple of weeks and now no brakes 🤷🏼‍♂️🤷🏼‍♂️

This resto is fighting me all the way !! 🙁

It's 40 years old now and was looking forward to a bit of motoring around this week tax free but too many jobs o/s now (again!!)

Check your grounds,
I have found that Plumping the connectors, (using one piece of electrical tape on the connector tongue works wonders, as well as an addition to splice a ground from the Pin side of the connector to the frame directly behind the Cluster to be a wonderkin.

I would also verify that tach has a good ground as well so you might want to run a continuity test between it and ground on pin 2 of the mylar (brown wire).

Turning on the headlight switch and the rev counter stop working is a broken earth lead on the back of the engine, the thin brown wire connected to the rocker cover stud with the thick earth lead from the coil bracket.

That's what happened to my car when my thin earth lead broke.

I've took an earth wire from the coil bracket to the rocker cover and there's a brown/white wire that I've found out the loom which I've put to the rocker cover as earth.

Maybe I've got this all wrong but there is no plain brown wire that's free coming out the loom near the rocker - only this brown/white.

I'll get a pic up tomorrow.

The LED on the instrument cluster not working neither and actually nor does the fuel gauge come to think of it. There's no power to the tank sender plug connection as I've checked the voltage with a meter 

Such fun ….

There is no voltage on the fuel sender, other wise the fuel in the tank would blow the tank outta your car.

The Sender is a Rheostat or Potentiometer, that varies the resistance of ground to your sending gauge.

One side of your Sender is ground, the other side is varying resistance to the gauge.

Testing the wires.
unplug the sender plug.  Use a 9Vdc battery.
negative on the brown wire in the connector, and the Positive to the violet wire.

Your fuel gauge should rear dang near full.  if it does then you have just tested your wires, if not.

Test your gauge the same way, if it doesn't deflect then gauge…If it does then you may have a connection issue
mylar break on your clocks or bad 10V stabilizer.

You have a ground wire on your clocks it is Brown.
Take an inline Scotch-lock wire splicer and tie it to frame behind the clocks.

You also need a earth wire from your Valve cover to your Coil bracket.

So…

I think my problem is that I've a brown/white wire that I've earthed to the rocker cover. I've seen no plain brown wire or broken one to use - only this brown/white in pics. This wire comes out the bit of loom that serves the reverse switch/sensor on side of head.

  I've put an earth lead from coil bracket to rocker cover in pic.


 

I think the brown and white wire is the correct wire, mine broke so had to add a bit of new wire so mines brown, If I was you I would cut the wire where the plastic cover is cut and solder on a new bit of wire.



My wire from the coil bracket is the thicker type but see if yours works?




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That's a hefty strap from coil bracket

Glad I've got the right wire anyway 

Cheers 

Well there's a defo an earth issue I think as occasionally the light switch turns the ignition on including fuel pump without the ignition key in 🤷🏼‍♂️

What do Divorces, Cars, Computers, and A good Cup of Coffee all have in common?

They only start with good grounds.


           

Start at the following Brian's Quick Test.
Briano's Quick Grounds test. | Volkswagen Owners Club Forum

If you still have the OEM cables on your car, chances are they are TOASTed, CORROded, and. going to be the Pain in your Keister for intermettents.

I would add that it wouldn't hurt you to run new Positive Cables from the Battery to the Starter, Alternator and Fuse Panel.

When I was Getting mine back to OEM.  I used 2 off the Shelf shielded Cables for the Negative, one Battery to frame and one Battery jumper from frame to the engine/Tranny.  
I also got the Negative battery cables that had the 2 spare grounds so I could off load the Added nut grounds to a soldered heat shrinked connection so I only had to worry about the nut.

I also did the same for the Battery so I could get my extra wires off the Positive post nuts.

Where I connected my Battery to Frame and Frame to engine on the frame horn stud I cleaned the Stud, Sprayed the Back side of the Battery connector then added the Jumper with a large Fender washer that went over the stud to the frame, battery cable end, then frame cable end, large fender washer, lock washer, and nut.  Once finished I sprayed the Frame connection with additional Corrosion preventor.

That way I didn't have to look at it again for a years.

Also take a  wire with Ring connectors from your alternator case bolt to the engine lifting EYE bolt.  

In the rear of the car, I took the tail lights ground and ran it to one of the bumper bolts with a large ring connector for each side…Bulbs seemed a tad bit brighter.

Well checked a few things recently reference dashboard issues on my Campaign - had a bit of free time today.

1. No light bulb working on light switch 
2. LCD not coming on
3. No fuel gauge


With point 1 - I've a 12v reading between the red & brown on the plug for the light switch plug but no reading for the bulb holder itself - tried new bulbs so electrical issue. Is there an issue with the black/yellow ?

I've padded out the connector mount so the instrument connector multiplug fits into the myler snugly but I've still not a LCD display. This partly comes on but then fades to nothing. Not sure why?

Hoping point i3 is connected to above, but I need to check the fuel sender unit in the tank

Put a 9V dc battery on the Fuel sender violet wire (+) and earth the negative lead.  Your Fue sender should move.

If not then you have a wiring issue between the sender wire, and the gauge possibly.

Also check the 10V stabilizer for Ground on the Screw, then 10V one one lead and B+ battery on the other.

I'll have a look at fuel sender tomorrow.

 Hooked up the car  battery on and lcd comes on then fades again - would this be the stabiliser - so you say Briano I need to put the black/neg  on to the screw holding the volt stabiliser onto rear of cluster and live to see the reading - is that the correct way ?

So part the issue is when I hook up the car battery, the lcd comes in (in part) per 1st pic and then fades in about 30 secs - see pic 2 & 3

So is this the 10v stabiliser that's screwed into the back of the cluster with the 3 prongs?

The 10V stabilizer usually effects the fuel and water temp gauge.

LCD's fading is usually a connection issue on the LCD to board connection.  

Some one here has a link to know issues with the MFA's.

Have a read of this. It may help you diagnose, 

View topic: MFA Operating Guide and Econo Gauge - The Mk1 Golf Owners Club